Before the Hero
by OfPheonixandHolly
Summary: You've always wanted the real story of Lily and James- the one that will finally stick to canon, draw you in and enthrall you just like Harry's story, stay true to their fiery relationship, involve every beloved character of the time period, and have regular updates that will keep you satisfied without fail. This is it, written by someone who wants that exact same story.
1. Prologue

**Ok, I've had this bit written for a long time, but I'm ready to start the multi-chapter James/Lily story you guys asked for in my poll. This is just a small introduction, but the rest will be from the end of fifth year onwards.**

The sun rose in the small hospital room, stretching its rays lazily over the slumbering frames and softly chirping equipment. A figure stirred in the worn chair near the bed. Just as the brilliant light shone on the red-haired man's face, his blue eyes blearily made an appearance under his rising eyelids. As the man stretched, his gaze landed on the two forms still lying beneath a thin blue sheet. A smile alit on his face just as a man dressed in doctor's garb entered the room.

The unannounced newcomer greeted the man, saying only, "Ah, Mr. Evans, I presume?"

Mr. Evans awoke from his trance to answer, but was rendered incapable of speech as he took in the appearance of the hospital worker. A beard, changing gracefully from auburn to white, reached the doctor's chest. Blue eyes twinkled out behind thin glasses, and Mr. Evans was convinced that he was hallucinating from lack of sleep when he saw the man wearing spangled blue robes beneath his doctor's coat.

"Erm, yes?" replied the shocked red head.

"Your lovely wife and newest daughter will be ready to go home tomorrow, sir. Your other daughter and her grandparents called to say they would be here in the next hour or so. But we were about to fill out some paperwork, and we'll need her name."

Mr. Evans stuttered. "Oh, of course. Er, Lily Evans is what we decided. What kind of paperwork?"

The extraordinary man smiled gently. "Just routine ones, I assure you."

Mr. Evans still appeared curious, but his wife's stirring caused him to turn to watch her wake. For a second time, he was rendered incoherent.

The doctor's eyes had a knowing glint in them. "Is there a problem, sir?"

"Um, no, no. Of course not. Well, yes? I could've sworn that sheet was blue." Indeed, the blue sheet of before was now black, emblazoned with a crest. One containing a badger, eagle, serpent, and lion all intertwined.

The man's beard twitched, as if trying to contain a chuckle. "I'm sure with how tired you are from standing through all the stress of labor and the birth, you didn't see it right at first."

A crease of confusion came to rest on Mr. Evan's brow as he turned back. "Yes, yes of course. I'm sure you're quite right, Doctor-?"

The doctor appeared not to have noticed the obvious request for a name. Instead, he nodded towards the bed. Luckily, the nearly simultaneous entrance of his family, waking of his blonde wife, and stirring cry of Lily distracted the new father, or he would have gone quite mad. For in the matter of a second, the sheet flashed a crimson and gold lion and fell back to its original dull blue.

The twinkling, wise eyes widened quickly in surprise, but regained their composure. Then, with a sweeping turn, the strange figure vanished. The small family started at the small pop. Only Lily, her small emerald eyes fringed in crimson, seemed not to react with surprise. The echo of the kind voice resonated through the room. "Your daughter will do great things someday, Mr. Evans…more than anyone could ever hope to fathom…"

**I'll post the first chapter once I get a few reviews that show some interest! Then daily chapters as long as people are reading! **

**Love,**

**OfPheonixandHolly**


	2. Trials, Tears, and Therapy

**As promised :)**

"…_filthy little Mudbloods like her!"_

The words kept playing again and again in her head as Lily sat curled on her bed in the fifth-year Gryffindor girl's dormitory. She felt hot tears trickling down her cheeks and hastily wiped them away, angry that she was so hurt by Severus' words. It shouldn't have been a surprise—for months now she had known her best—well, _former _best friend's opinion on blood status. He had always assured her that the opinions of his distasteful friends were not his own, but… She snorted in disgust. She had known it would happen eventually.

Shaking her head to clear it of her depressing thoughts, the redhead resolved not to dwell on the situation anymore. Lily Evans was nothing if not put together and prepared for anything, and yet her belongings remained unpacked for the journey home tomorrow.

The freckled girl began moving around the deserted room, desperate for distraction. She would have a lonely month to grieve and recover over the summer before spending the rest of the time at Alice's house, so the sensible thing to do at the moment was to locate the various articles of clothing, books, quills, and other belongings that had been scattered throughout the dormitory over the past several months.

It was during the point at which the redheaded witch had begrudgingly wiggled underneath Marlene's bed to retrieve a wayward sock that the other teenage inhabitants of the room decided to burst in. Marlene, ever the one to misinterpret a situation, took one look at the freckled legs sticking out from underneath her four-poster and declared, "She always was the odd one. She's so distraught that she's hiding underneath a bed! Lily, under my bed isn't the best of locations for a cry. I'm fairly certain we understand your current state well enough that you don't have to hide. Or try it under Emmeline's… Godric knows she's far neater."

Mary and Emmeline rolled their eyes at the raven-haired witch's lack of tact and moved to their own beds to start packing. Alice shook her head. As she dove underneath the same bed as Lily, she said laughingly, "Marly, please. You know as well as I do that Lily has a bit more dignity than a person who would consider a cry next to your disgusting collection of old socks and candy wrappers healthy."

Comprehension dawned on Marlene's face. "Oh—she's in cleaning mode, is she? Lily, could you be a doll and help me? I think I need a little more help than the others…"

Lily and Alice reappeared from beneath the four-poster, each with armfuls of miscellaneous items. The red-rimmed emerald eyes danced with laughter. "Believe me, Marly, we know. Alice and I always seem to end up cleaning up for ourselves and you because of your aversion to cleanliness."

Marlene grinned and lounged in a fluffy chair in the corner. "I'm a rather fantastic supervisor though. And you two seem to enjoy it, so have at it!"

With laughter and some light-hearted digs at Marlene's mess, the girls finished packing for themselves. The three other witches laid on Lily's bed and watched Lily and Alice begin charming Marlene's things into her trunk when the redhead's stomach gave an audible growl.

Seeing her friends' concerned glances, Lily felt the onslaught of emotion coming on again. The girls had known to let her ignore the subject as she wished, but now it was difficult to avoid prying. They were all quite aware of the fact that Lily had skipped dinner to escape to the dormitory, after the episode down by the lake earlier.

The emerald eyes began filling with tears again, and she furiously ignored them. "Sorry girls, I…I just missed dinner and all, you know. Had to start packing and…and I wanted to check on… on something…"

Her voice petered to a halt when she saw that none of the girls were fooled in the least. Before she could try another excuse, Mary interrupted with a sympathetic clucking. "Don't you worry, Lily dear, I'll go grab you something from the kitchens."

This small act of kindness was all it took for Lily to burst into sobs again. Mary looked torn, but Alice waved her on. The blonde scrambled out of the dormitory, hoping that the house elves were still up.

The room went silent for a moment while the remaining girls pondered what to say. None of them had been at all fond of Snape, but Lily was one of their closest friends, and the scene down at the lake had been terrible. They understood that Lily had known that Severus and she could not be friends forever with the Dark magic he had fallen into, but no one had imagined that the end of the friendship would be so sudden, so public, and so cruel.

Alice broke the silence tentatively, gently hugging the crying witch. "Lily, you can let it out. Maybe we never understood Sn- Severus, but we're here for you."

Emmeline whispered in disbelief, "Lily, it was _awful _what he called you. And I know you want to blame Sirius and James, but no decent person would ever call another person that no matter what was happening."

Lily's head popped up from Alice's shoulder. She spoke quietly, but firmly. "I know, I know it wasn't their faults. Sev and I were always fighting, and all his friends are mixed up in that awful blood-status rubbish… it shouldn't have hurt me so much, because I knew… but…"

Her voice broke, but they all knew what she was going to say. It was the first time that the blood-status opinion has been spoken so publicly, and the way it had destroyed a longtime friendship was frightening. For a long time the girls sat talking through Lily's sadness and anger, and Marlene had her laughing by the time Mary reappeared with a tray of food and a worried expression.

After Lily had consumed a number of biscuits and a mug of hot tea, the green eyes observed a whispered conversation going on between Alice and Mary. She interrupted the joke Marlene had been relaying to Emmeline. "Mary, what's up?"

The blue-eyed girl wouldn't look at Lily. "It's nothing much, Lily, just nothing important—"

Marlene chuckled, "Oh please, Mary. Even Lily's laughing now, and you haven't cracked a smile since—"

Mary shook off her hesitation after a glance at Alice, and resigned herself to telling to bothersome news. "Since the trip to the kitchens, yes. Or rather, the trip back. You see, Snape's sitting outside the portrait hole… says he won't move until you talk to him, Lily."

As if on cue, the four girls all immediately turned to Lily. The auburn brows had furrowed into an angry frown. Shrugging off Emmeline's consoling hand, the redhead rose from the bed. "Don't worry about it," she said tightly. "I'll handle it."

And with a slam of the door, the four concerned friends were left waiting for Lily's return.

**Alrighty, same deal here. I need a few more reviews and I'll have that third chapter up in no time! Next up is Snape and Lily and then our first Lily/James moment!**

**Love,**

**OfPheonixandHolly**


	3. Apologies and Arguments

**Okay, here's the next one! If I get five more reviews, I'll have the next one up by the end of the day.**

The moonlight danced across the flagstones of the corridor, slowing sliding to rest on two figures outside the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"I'm sorry," spoke the taller one, a boy with rather greasy black hair and a large nose.

His companion scoffed. "I'm not interested."

The boy desperately tried again, but could only repeat more feelingly, "I'm sorry!"

"Save your breath."

With that the witch crossed her dressing gown-clad arms, obviously highly displeased with the boy's apology. He attempted to plead with her, but she spoke first. "I only came out because Mary told me you were threatening to sleep here."

He seized his chance to speak. "I was. I would have done. I never meant to call you Mudblood, it just—"

"Slipped out?" Lily's voice revealed no pity. "It's too late. I've made excuses for you for years. None of my friends can understand why I even talk to you. You and your precious little Death Eater friends. You see, you don't even deny it! You don't even deny that's what you're all aiming to be! You can't wait to join You-Know-Who, can you?"

The wizard could only open and close his mouth silently, unwilling to confirm or deny her accusation.

She shook her head sadly. "I can't pretend anymore. You've chosen your way, I've chosen mine."

His eyes widened in shock and he tried to backtrack. "No…listen, I didn't mean—"

She finished the sentence for him with a look of disgust. "—to call me Mudblood? But you call everyone of my birth Mudblood, Severus. Why should I be any different?"

Severus Snape struggled in silence, but Lily turned on her heel and reentered her common room before the sallow boy could string together another pathetic excuse. As the Fat Lady swung shut and shot the wizard a nasty glance, Severus shrugged in defeat and slouched off in the direction of the dungeons.

Inside the Gryffindor common room, Lily weaved her way through gold and crimson chairs over to the girls' staircase. Just before climbing the stairs, however, she turned. Her green eyes scanned over the busy room and found a lanky figure lounging in an armchair. In front of him, Remus and Sirius faced off in a game of wizard's chess, and Peter contented himself with throwing out completely unhelpful encouragements to whoever appeared to have the upper hand.

The freckled witch hesitated, contemplating going over to James, but decided against it. He looked quite sullen, obviously sulking from the earlier incident. And, she reasoned, she hadn't done anything particularly mean. Regardless of what had occurred between her and Severus, she would have said no.

It wasn't the first time James had asked Lily out. It was only the most recent in a long series of hideously embarrassing incidents, made especially awkward because the date requests were really the only interaction between the two Gryffindors. After the opening feast of first year, James and Lily had found quite separate groups of close friends—mostly due to the childish tendency to gravitate towards people of one's own gender—and though the two groups were certainly friendly, conflicts between certain members prevented any prolonged close contact.

Lily had settled on apologizing to James tomorrow when she finally pivoted and ascended the staircase, still contemplating her response down by the lake. She supposed she was rather close with Remus—couldn't help it, of course, with his being such a dear. And she even admitted to herself that Sirius Black and herself got on pretty well. Peter was rather quiet and whiney, but she certainly didn't _dislike _the boy. It all seemed to come back to Potter.

The auburn brows settled into a frown when she thought of the messy-haired, obnoxious Gryffindor chaser. There was no denying that he was rather attractive, and of course extremely intelligent and talented. But she couldn't _stand _his ego or the way he managed to compete with her without trying. And the problem was that he was quite aware of how attractive, intelligent, and talented he was.

So every time he approached her for a date or she caught him pulling yet another immature, even cruel, prank, the result was a extraordinarily loud and heated argument, usually in front of an audience of students. The two quite simply couldn't work together.

But the teachers did try. James and Lily were always being partnered together, because with the sheer amount of talent and drive each embodied, there was always some hope that the arguments would cease and the two would attain their full potential.

It never happened. Without fail, James would say obnoxious or inappropriate, and Lily would retaliate with her fiery temper and quick wit. Though the results typically ended up rather better than anyone else's, it was not without heated debates, impromptu duels, spilt potions, or James being sent to the Hospital Wing with a rather strategic kick from Lily.

So though they were forced together in class, there was too much conflict to encourage much contact outside of class. In fact, Lily only spoke to James if he had just hexed someone and she felt the need to reprimand the wayward boy.

As Lily opened the door and entered her dormitory, all unpleasant thoughts of James Potter ceased. It never occurred to her that Sirius and occasionally Remus participated in the same behavior, or that she only ever flew into a rage when _James _had pulled the prank. No, Lily Evans was quite oblivious to the focus she centered on James Potter.

That didn't mean everyone else was.

**Not much going on in this chapter, but I'm just trying to introduce the situation before the James/Lily interaction that's going to happen next chapter. Obviously the Snape/Lily moment is in line with what JK wrote in Snape's Worst Memory. Remember, review and the next part goes up!**

**Love,**

**OfPheonixandHolly**


	4. Discussions and Determination

**Hehe I lied :) I got a number of really excited reviews and it got me so excited that I typed this right up!**

Sirius pried his eyes from the chessboard a while later when one of his pieces was beating up one of Remus'. The casual look of smug satisfaction slid off his handsome face as soon as he saw his best mate. James was still curled up in the patterned old armchair with a sullen frown on his face, muttering to himself indignantly.

"_Toerag—hmpfh! Am not, and Snivellus is no better, with his—"_

Remus also glanced up after noticing his opponent's sudden shift in attention, and shook his head exasperatedly. "James, mate, buck up. I told you to stop asking her out in public. You know she hates the attention, makes her uncomfortable and all…"

The hazel, bespectacled eyes snapped to Remus'. "Why, though? I don't understand why she won't just say yes—just last week I had two Hufflepuffs swooning because I _winked_ at them, and she won't even give me a chance!"

Sirius jumped in. "Oi, try not hexing her best mate before popping the question next time, eh? 'Sides, why even worry about Evans? You said it yourself—plenty of other birds out there waiting for you to notice them. You have your pick of the lot, so don't waste your time on just one."

Remus wearily sighed at the sight of Peter eagerly bobbing his head at Sirius' advice. James simply hung his head in defeat. "Think I haven't tried? But no matter what girl it is, they just don't compare. She's _perfect_, but so bloody dense. She's gorgeous, and intelligent—although she tries too hard, not like me or Sirius—and everyone loves her…"

It was here that Remus butted in. "Prongs, mate, you know why she says no."

He didn't expect all three of his friends to cock their heads in confusion, but battled on. "Well… to be honest, you're a little bit of a prick."

James and Sirius recoiled in indignation, but Remus continued, "No, let me explain. You don't try in school, and yet you get almost as good of grades as she does. Grades that she works late into the night for. Meanwhile, you spend your time playing Quidditch and acting as though you're the king of everything because you can toss a Quaffle around better than most people. And then while she's busy being kind to everyone and working hard on her Prefect duties, you and Sirius strut around hexing people because they looked at you funny or walked into you accidently. You embarrass her in front of everyone when you ask her out, and today you used her as a bargaining tool. You make her feel bad about herself, James, and—"

Sirius had recovered his voice. "Snivellus _deserves _every one of our hexes, and he's always cursing us right back."

Peter piped in, "It's Dark magic, too!"

Remus fought to get in the last word. "James, you know as well as I do that generally you attack people because you're bored. And you say you're against Dark magic, but what you're doing isn't really better than what the Slytherins do, in the end. Hurting people for your own amusement."

The thin, tired-looking boy stopped there, looking a little nervous about his lecture. He was lucky to have his friends, but though he thought they were amazing…James needed to grow up.

James' brow furrowed as he muttered, "Leave it, Padfoot."

Sirius, who had been a moment from defending James, looked surprised. James continued, "He's right. I am a right prick sometimes, I suppose…Maybe… Maybe that's what needs to change."

The room was silent, as almost everyone had gone to bed and the Marauders watched James think. After a moment, he spoke. "Moony… d'you suppose that if… if I was a little less loud and," he gulped, "_obnoxious_, and if I held off on the hexing… D'you suppose that she might say yes at some point?"

Remus' scarred face looked faintly bemused. "I reckon so, James. I don't think she hates you, I just think that…that she might a little disappointed with you. And how you act sometimes."

James looked up resolutely. "Well then, I guess I some work to do this summer, eh boys? And then when we get back, Lily Evans will agree to a date in no time."

Sirius scowled. "This better not mean an end to pranks, Moony. I don't care if my best mate is hung up on some bird, but it's not going to ruin my fun."

Peter mirrored Sirius' scowl in a way that made him look rather constipated, and failed to mimic Sirius' masculine pout. Remus hurried to rectify the situation. "Look, Prongs. Don't change who you are, because that's not the point. You just have to try and be a better person. And most of all…I think you have to stop expecting a relationship."

"Why the bloody hell would I change if it didn't mean—"

"Wait—this means he'll still prank, right? Brilliant—"

Remus cut off James and Sirius. "Look, you expect Lily to say yes someday, right? That's what makes you seem so cocky. Just try being her friend for a bit, yeah?"

James looked grim. "Fine. Fine! Friendship… I can handle that. If it means that, eventually, she'll say yes. But only if—"

Remus interrupted one last time. "It will, Prongs. Just give her some time. And for Merlin's sake, both you and Sirius seriously need to attempt not being such arses. It isn't just for Lily. There's a war going on out there, and if you think anyone will think children's pranks are clever and mature, well, I think you're going to struggle to be taken seriously."

Peter gave a faint squeak at the mention of the war, but the other two boys appeared determined and resigned. Muttering their assent, they one by one rose from their perches, stretched, and made their way upstairs.

Peter hovered near Remus, begging for a little assistance with his packing. The tired wizard nodded, waved his wand to pack up the wizard's chess games, and with one last regretful glance around the common room, followed Wormtail up the boys' staircase.

**I know that I promised Lily/James this chapter, but I felt this was necessary for the plot. Same deal- if I get enough reviews, the nest one will be up either late tonight or early tomorrow. I ask for reviews because I feel like people only really click on a story if it has a decent number of reviews, and I want people to read this. So if you want more, click that button! You don't even have to be signed in :)**

**Love**

**OfPheonixandHolly**


	5. A Break from Routine

**I'm pretty proud! A page longer than most of the others on Word, and the rest of you have to thank jholms, Cassia4u, RidingonRumbleroar'sback, Tanja88, ipodrocker16, AccioSeeker7825, writingblondie, and Jannet707 for this! Thanks to them, I found the motivation to pump out yet another chapter. You guys are the best :)**

Nearly every morning, the fifth-year Gryffindor girls could be found eating marmalade and toast at the far end of their House table just before the morning rush of students. Waiting for Marlene to finish her rather unusually large portion for food amidst the chatter of the noisy first-years nearby, the friends would partake in some meaningless early-morning chatter. Then approximately between the time Lily resigned herself to amusement with making another cup of strong tea and Mary deciding one more strip of bacon couldn't hurt before class, Frank Longbottom and two of his close friends would claim the seats the first-years had just vacated. While Alice and Emmeline were distracted (Both had extraordinarily obvious interest in the sixth-year boys), another pack of Gryffindors would enter into the Great Hall.

Cutting it close as usual, Remus and Peter were always the first to enter. It was typical for Remus to look quite harassed by a nervous-looking Peter, because Peter Pettigrew was completely incapable of being prepared for his classes of the day. Politely ignoring Peter—or as politely as it is possible to ignore a close friend in distress, Remus would glance down to the end of the table and give a weary but friendly wave to Lily and Mary, both of whom would have run out of meaningless topics appropriate for a drowsy school morning. They would acknowledge him with identical cheery waves, and Marlene would attempt a greeting with a mouth full of pumpkin juice and hands inevitably holding sharp utensils.

The two boys would make their way over to the table of their House and sit down, always at the opposite end from their female counterparts. About the moment that Marlene decided that she really had eaten enough to survive through her morning classes, the girls would bid farewell to Frank and his friends and move to exit the Great Hall. At the same time, James and Sirius would strut through the doors, causing any number of young schoolgirls to blush an unattractive shade of pink and drop whatever they had been holding.

The two boys and five girls would pass each other at roughly the Ravenclaw table. Sirius would suavely utter a good morning to each of the ladies and move on to join his breakfasting friends, while James held back. The raven-haired wizard would nod to each of the girls in turn, with friendly responses from four. Saving the best for last, he would inevitably follow up his greeting to Lily with a rather rude and occasionally inappropriate pick-up line. Lily would toss her auburn hair indignantly and stalk off, followed closely by her apologetic female classmates. James would shrug off the rejection casually, wink at whichever female happened to be sitting nearby, and trot off to down enough food for an army before the bell rang.

This was the morning routine.

On this particular day, however, the day on which scores of children would board the Hogwarts Express and bid farewell to the beloved castle for several weeks, something was different.

Everything was going as usual. If anything, the girls were a bit late because Alice had packed her left shoe accidentally and Remus looked a little less haggard because Peter was fretting over something less urgent than homework. But that was it—just slight variations. The notable difference was still to come.

Marlene uttered a poorly disguised burp, and the fifth-year girls took that as their cue to return to the dormitory one last time to ensure the house elves had retrieved everything for the train. They rose from the benches slowly, having consumed a little more food than usual owing to it being their last meal at the school for a time, and made their way over to the doors. According to routine, James and Sirius entered the hall at the same time.

Just as was normal, Sirius bid them each good morning and a happy summer before moving on to the breakfast table. James gave his typical morning greeting to each girl. Then the moment came. He turned to Lily, who was studiously avoiding eye contact and steeling herself for yet another cheesy line that would cause her blood to boil.

It never came.

She glanced up cautiously after a pause, confused by his hesitance. Perhaps Sirius had not prepared him a joke, or James had simply decided to ad-lib and was a little exhausted this morning. The last thing anyone expected was what James did. He smiled—not smirked, but raised the corners of his lips in an rueful manner—and said softly, "'Morning, Evans. Could I talk to you for a second? I'd like to…like to… well, _apologize_ for my actions yesterday after the exam."

He raised his hazel eyes from the freckled face to see four other female expressions of complete shock. Feeling his ears turn hot, he muttered, "Y'know… alone? I want to explain properly, which is a little difficult when a bunch of people happen to be gaping at us."

Lily shook herself from her silence in time to notice the number of people that had seen the scene by the lake and were now leaning over to better view the spectacle that was doubtlessly unfolding. She could only imagine that her whole face was quite red at the moment, and so hurriedly spoke. "Of course. Um… let's go into the Entrance Hall, why don't we? Girls… I guess you'll have to check the room without me. Just… just meet me back here before we have to grab the carriages, why don't you?"

Clearly still floored by the entire situation, the girls obediently shuffled off. As James nudged her elbow towards the doors, Lily noted that the only people in the room that seemed not to have noticed anything out of the ordinary were Sirius, Remus, and Peter, all of whom appeared far too concentrated on their plates of sausage and eggs.

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously, she allowed herself to be led to the entrance of a corridor just underneath the main staircase. James appeared to have decided that the location was good enough for this momentous occasion, because he stopped walking and turned.

He cleared his throat and began the speech he had practiced with Moony that morning. Or rather, he attempted to remember what Remus had told him to say, hopefully without any truly distasteful mistakes. "Evans—sorry, Lily—I wanted to tell you that I'm really sorry for what I did down by the lake yesterday. I shouldn't have hexed Snape, and I shouldn't have started the fight just because Sirius and I were bored. I realize that we started it, and it was wrong…"

Here he gulped, clearly having a difficult time not justifying his actions. He resolutely plowed on when he saw Lily's skeptical expression. "Right…erm, hexing, wrong…oh yeah… And I'm most sorry for the way that I asked you out, Lily. I really do like you, and well, I get that the way I treated you yesterday, " he paused again as something dawned on him, "actually, almost everyday, is rather nasty. I want you to like me, and I…I understand that I'm not going about it the right way."

James' petered to a stop when he looked at Lily's face. Though she still had her eyebrows raised, it was an expression of exasperation this time. Seeing that James felt his apology was complete, she began. "Thank you, James—and Remus, of course, who doubtlessly was the one who made you realize what a toerag you were yesterday."

The wizard's ears turned faintly red, and Lily felt her lips curve into a reluctant smile at the endearing embarrassment. "I shouldn't have yelled at you like I did, and I want you to know that I don't blame you for what…what happened between Severus and I. It, well, it was bound to happen at some point. Thank you for apologizing… and hopefully Remus will wear off on you at some point and you'll actually stop putting us in this situation every time you decide to be stupid and reckless."

James' head popped up at her silence and looking rather hopeful when he caught sight of her smile, said eagerly, "And if I stop being reckless and stupid, would you maybe—just possibly, reconsider your answer at some point?"

The witch's smile disappeared at the question. "James… I don't know. I…well, I would really just like to work on being friends, if you really want to try and grow up. I don't want to be mean, but… right now I think I really just need you to try and be a friend."

In a surprising display of maturity—less surprising, one must allow, because today seemed to be a day of surprises—James nodded his head sagely and stuck out his hand. "Sure, Evans. You and me—let's try it. Friends?"

Lily hesitated, but put her smaller, pale hand in his and shook. "Friends. As long as you… well, you know. Work on…"

"Being a better person and all that. Got it. See you around, Evans."

"Have a nice summer, Potter."

With that, Lily turned and walked around to the staircase where she would meet the other girls. As she took her seat on the ninth step, which seemed like a nice place to rest before the others returned to the Hall, she watched James dash out from under the stairs, throw his fist in the air, and whoop. She giggled softly in amusement, but would have denied it to anyone who asked. Typical Potter. Well, it was a step in the right direction, this… truce. She couldn't expect a teenage boy to mature in a day. Shaking her head ruefully, she resolved not to think about the conversation with Potter until she could talk about it with the other girls. It certainly had not been a typical morning, and she thought perhaps five minds were better than one at deciphering the actions of a certain enigma of a boy.

**Shoutouts in the next chapter to all new reviewers (See, incentive! As if a new chapter wasn't enough reason to click that button and leave encouragement or concrit.). I'm only going to post if there's enough interest, and I really want to know what you guys want in this next one. A scene with the girls on the train? Or do you want a Marauders or Snape/Lily scene too? Let me know!**

**Love,**

**OfPheonixandHolly**


	6. On the Train Home

**Might be the only one I have time for today, and it's all thanks to: writingblondie, A Clouded Mind, AllAboutObsessions, aa, KA, and RidingonRumbleroar'sback.**

Alice and Emmeline slid through the compartment door, each with rather silly grins on their faces. As the two girls took their seats, Marlene looked up from the Witch Weekly quiz she had been taking and noting the twin expressions of contentment, said loudly, "Snogged Frank and Benjy, then, have you?"

This particular question caught the attention of Lily and Mary, both of whom had been reading. They leaned in eagerly, clearly wanting to know if Marlene was indeed correct. Emmeline only shook her head glumly, but Alice flushed a brilliant pink and stuttered, "Snogged? Frank? Of course not… why would you—"

Even Emmeline snickered at Alice's denial. Alice frowned and continued, ignoring her immature friends. "Just because I happen to enjoy _talking _to Frank Longbottom and happen to consider him talented and intelligent—"

"—and extremely attractive…"

"—and because you blush every time he so much as _smiles _at you…"

"—and are rather fond of haunting the Quidditch pitch whenever he happens to be practicing…"

"—and secretly wish you could rip his shirt off and invest some time in more _physical_ interactions with him…"

Seeing Alice's mortified appearance, Lily wrinkled her nose and stepped in. "Marly, that was a little much. However true your assessment may be—" Alice gasped in affront. "The point of the argument was that you completely, totally fancy the pants off Frank Longbottom."

"Hark who's talking, Lily Evans."

Alice recovered from her state of disbelief in time to prevent Lily and Marlene from erupting into a tangent of dirty phrases that no one wanted to hear. "Oh my Merlin. I fancy Frank!"

Mary snorted in an unladylike manner before adding, "You may be the last person on the face of the planet, other than perhaps Frank himself, who was not privy to this knowledge. A match made in heaven, that is, with the both of you being so clever and yet so endearingly dense."

Emmeline, motivated by her sympathy for poor dear Alice and the desire to avoid the subject of her massive crush on a certain Benjy Fenwick, stepped in. Leaning back in a would-be casual way, she said loudly over Alice's shocked gasps and the others' giggles, "Speaking of relationships, Lily, what happened between you and James earlier?"

The compartment went completely silent for a moment before Lily decided how to respond. "Well," she began hesitatingly, "Potter pulled me over and apologized for yesterday…"

"And?"

It was rather unfortunate for Lily, who had resolved not to say anything about the truce until the point where friendly interaction between she and James made it impossible not to speak about, that at the exact moment she was about deny anything else having been said, James Potter strode by the compartment window with Remus. The wizard glanced into the compartment the girls were in by chance, it seemed. Seeing Lily in the corner, he gave a cheery wave and continued on.

Though the lack of anything obnoxious already had their attention, what sent the girls into a frenzy of curiosity was when they turned to see Lily's reaction. The redheaded witch had a slight smile on her face and was lowering her hand from an unmistakable wave.

"Why in Godric's name were you _waving _at James Potter?"

"You're smiling! Why on earth are you _smiling?_"

"You two finally snogged, didn't you!"

Lily, with a faint look of disgust at Marlene, said, "Of course not. Ew. Ick. Never. It's just that… well, James and I have decided to become friends. But on one condition. He's promised to grow up and stop hexing people. And it's for the sake of all of us, if you ask me, because his immaturity seems to be the only reason those boys and us never spend any time together…"

The witch halted her speech with a look of concern at her friends. None of them appeared able to speak, until Marlene's face broke into a wicked grin and she spoke slyly, "Oh, of course. 'Friends.' Until you finally realize how incredibly _perfect_ you two would be together and you become…_more than friends."_

Mary smacked Marlene before Lily could, and said, "Oh hush, Marly. I think it's wonderful that you two have decided to get on, Lil. It's a little difficult to spend time with any of those Marauders when you and James are always jumping down each other's throats—"

"Well I expect they'll be doing the same, just with different intentions, in no time—"

"Oh do shut up, Marlene! We're not even friends yet. I've agreed to give it a chance is all, and if he doesn't stop being such a prick all the time, the deal's off."

Alice and Emmeline both jumped in to add their positive opinions on the truce, thereby preventing any nasty argument from erupting. They gently guided the conversation in another direction and had been talking about the latest collection of Sleekeasy's hair products when Lily stood up to go check on the progress of the food cart. The other four made their excuses and as soon as the witch had left the compartment, the remaining friends leaned in for a whispered conversation.

"Don't ruin this for James, Marlene, she's got to figure it out on her own!" insisted Alice.

Mary added quickly, "He's still an arse—working for this friendship will do a lot of good for him."

"But it's obvious as Alice's crush on Frank that the only reason Lily gets so worked up around that boy is because she's _attracted _to him—"

Emmeline cut in. "But she's usually _mad _at him, Marly, because as much as I like the boy, he's not the nicest person. Just let him try, and Lily will find out eventually whether or not they'll ever be friends or more."

"Fine, but the second she starts freaking out about what she looks like to meet him for breakfast, I'm going to say I told you so—"

"Marlene… give it a rest."

**If you like this story, you might want to put it on Story Alert, because so many people are updating their multi-chapter fics right now that mine is sort of getting buried on the page. Anyways, as usual thanks for reading and please review for a mention next chapter. More reviews= faster chapters. Once again, let me know if you want any Marauders or Snape/Lily before they arrive at the platform!**

**Love,**

**OfPheonixandHolly**


	7. Unexpected Events

**Shout-outs to RidingonRumbleroar'sback, writingblondie, and thommy. Thanks to them, I'm still going. But seriously, if you're going to add this on Story Alert, is it really that difficult to review?**

A few cars down from where the fifth-year Gryffindor girls were sitting, Remus flung open the door to the compartment where Sirius and Peter by the sudden noise, the two boys that had been engrossed in tapping an old piece of parchment with their wands glanced up. Frightened by the unusually eager face Remus wore, Peter ventured to ask, "Moony, Prongs, what's happened?"

Remus only impatiently waved off Peter's question. "Well, Prongs? Explain what just happened."

The tousle-haired wizard simply sighed, closed the compartment door, and sat down. "I did what you said, Moony. Might as well get used to it. I intend for that to be the result of this… truce Evans and I have."

The lycanthrope turned to Sirius and Peter to explain. "We walked by their compartment and James just waved and moved on. And she _smiled_ and waved back!"

Peter still looked bemused, but Sirius shook his head in disgust and went back to the piece of parchment. "_That's_ what had you all worked up, Remmy? I thought at least one of you had finally got a move on and snogged a bird or something similarly momentous."

Briefly scowling at the nickname, Remus huffed at the lack of enthusiasm shown for this news. Peter had moved on to picking a funny-looking scab on his right knee, Sirius was still prodding at the paper, and James had progressed to looking out into the aisle with a bored expression. "Well the momentous occasion, you dolts, was that James actually listened to my advice for once. _And it worked!_ Just goes to show—"

A familiar yelling suddenly interrupted the tirade the other three had been bracing for. "How _dare_ you try to apologize again—"

Sirius moved over to the inside window to watch the unfolding scene with a sort of sick fascination. "Looks like Snape tried to—"

"And then you turn around and see them and _call me a Mudblood again!_"

James could hear Avery goading Snape. "Prove that she doesn't mean anything to you anymore, then. See, like this—"

Although neither Sirius nor James could see what Avery had done from such an angle, he had obviously just sent a curse at Lily, judging by the flash of bright light. And then in quick succession, just as the three Marauders competent at dueling and not cowering in a corner burst into the aisle to lend a wand, Lily Evans' voice could be heard as the source of a series of hexes and jinxes.

"_Protego! Expelliarmus—Silencio- Locomotor mortis—flipendo-Avis oppugno…"_

When the string of the spells and chaos resulting from them finally died out, the Marauders, along with a large number of scared-looking students, gaped at the scene. Other than her flushed face and mussed hair, Lily Evans looked completely unscathed and yet still managed to look miffed at what she had had to resort to. Meanwhile, the Slytherin that had tried cursing Lily laid on the ground as stiff as a board, looking as though he had been flung into several of his silenced cronies, all of whom still vainly covered their faces from a large swarm of small birds that seemed to be attacking them.

Severus Snape was the only one who remained standing, although he was no better off than his pathetic housemates. His face, too, bore the unmistakable marks of a recent bird attack, and he was just as incapable of speech, due to the fact that his tongue had been glued to the roof of his mouth by a well-aimed _Langlock_ hex. The funny thing about the situation was that he did not attempt to escape, though his limbs were not restricted by anything other than fear.

The silence was broken by Lily, who commanded the scene with her impressive display of unbridled rage. Not even James had seen her in a temper such as this, even the day previous in the episode by the lake. She tossed the captured wands on the floor before marching up to the frozen Slytherin boy. Her voice was quiet and calm, but it cut through the silence like a knife, clear and frigid with disdain. "Don't you _ever_ speak to me again, Severus Snape. I could rant about how stupid you've been or how you singlehandedly managed to kill our friendship, but it would be a waste of my time. You, and your revolting Death Eater friends, can rot in hell for all that I care. You and your despicable beliefs and double-standards and insults and _lies…"_

Her voice rose to a shriek as she stepped back. "_Levicorpus!" _

She stared without pity at the dangling boy she had once called her best friend. "You mean _nothing_ to me anymore."

Clearly done with the entire situation and returning to her semi-normal way of getting things done briskly and efficiently, she appraised the aisle she had just managed to destroy. Muttering various spells to repair the glass of the windows and return the train car to normal, she finally deemed her work done.

Noticing the Marauders for the first time, she spoke in her typical cheery tone when she addressed them. "I hate to ask, but I feel as though I've done enough damage for the day. Could you lot deal with them for me? Don't know if I could do it without hexing them again…"

Nodding smartly at Remus' faint murmur of assent, she smiled widely. "Thank you. Sorry for the mess. I daresay, barring expulsion for this… situation…I'll be seeing you again soon. Have a happy summer, you four!"

By the time Remus, Sirius, Peter, and James had recovered from their shock, Lily Evans had disappeared down the aisle to return to her compartment. Excepting the large pile of struggling Slytherins, the train car appeared as if nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.

Sirius let out a long, slow whistle. "Have to hand it to you Prongs; Lily Evans is a _wicked _dueler. I'd say she was a nutter, but that was bloody amazing. Might be worth all your trouble after all."

James just shrugged, but as Remus and he moved to salvage the pile of Lily's victims, he had a small grin on his face. _Bloody amazing._

**Eek, I'm a little nervous about your reactions. But I think that Lily's pretty fiery, and that Snape and her were done after that incident by the lake. She won't be hexing him ever again, honest. Haven't planned out next chapter yet, but I think it'll be Lily at home over the summer just before she goes to Alice's house. Anyways, I have a number of things I need to hear from you guys: How am I doing? Are the main characters "in character"? What do you guys want to see in the next few chapters- the summer ones? And then I'd really like to have some name suggestions for Lily's parents' first names. All right, once again, put this on Alert if you haven't because so many people are writing multi-chapter fics right now, and REVIEW. Shoutouts, more chapters, and virtual hugs are your rewards!**_  
_

**Love,**

**Of PheonixandHolly**


	8. At Home

**I'm not immensely proud of this for some reason, though I think it's because it's really just a filler chapter. Thanks to RidingonRumbleroar'sback, Gracie, anon, Prongs the Jedi Master, KonohaOrangeHokage, Queen Charlotte the Courageous, and writingblondie for the helpful reviews and encouragement!**

_Tap. Tap._

A lump underneath the covers stirred slightly and fell back to motionlessness.

_Tap. Tap. _

A teenage girl with tousled bed head and bleary green eyes sat upright. Her look of confusion disappeared when she saw the shadow outside the window. "Okay, all right. Keep your feathers on, I'm coming."

_Tap. Tap. _

Lily Evans, motivated by the irritating owl outside that appeared not to have heard her, began crawling out of her warm cocoon of blankets and—

_Tap. Tap._

_Thump._

Gentle cursing could be heard from the floor as Lily righted herself from her fall. She stumbled over to the window, and in doing so caught a view of her Muggle alarm clock. The red numbers told her that it was 4:32 am. On a Saturday morning. Groaning about the hour of day this owl had decided to drop by, she flung open her window and allowed the offending bird in.

It hooted softly, apparently unaware that mail at such an hour was not typically welcomed with a smile or owl treat. Lily sighed as she took the letter from the particularly small bird and moved to supply the newcomer with the food and water of the empty cage of her own Barred owl. It seemed that Lyra was still waiting for Marlene's response to yesterday's inquiry about her method of arrival at Lily's house. True to form, Marlene had still not responded and the Evans family was expecting her today.

Noting the handwriting on the parchment she held, Lily looked up at the recuperating owl and frowned. Alice didn't have an owl… she glanced down at the letter and began to read.

_Dear Lily,_

_Thank you for the new book! At first I just laughed because it was such a typical gift from Miss Bookworm herself, but I've had a look at some of the Deception and Disguise spells and potions—they're brilliant! Perfect for when Alice Fortescue and Lily Evans hit the scene as the youngest female Aurors in history, right? Well, I'm sure that's why you bought me the book for my birthday, but still…_

_I'm sure you're wondering about the owl, because you're about a million times more observant than Marlene, who told me that she had always thought I had one. Gift from my uncle—the one that owns the ice cream shop we always visit. I thought it was safe to send her on her first delivery to you because your sister isn't there to screech like she usually does. _

Lily smiled at her friend's thoughtfulness. Whenever Lily received a letter by owl, Petunia was known to throw a fit. Emmeline's owl had once been hit by an oven mitt thrown by Lily's sister, and though the witch apologized for her sister's actions, she was simply glad that Petunia hadn't reached for the frying pan nearby. This summer, after a particularly nasty incident in early July when Petunia had unknowingly allowed Severus Snape into the Evans' home, Lily's older sister had moved in with a friend in London.

Although Petunia had always had an aversion to Snape because of the magic he represented to her, she let him in on that July afternoon because a few friends were over and she didn't want them to have prolonged contact with the "greasy-haired freak from that bad neighborhood". Severus had eagerly seized the chance to have a private conversation with her, but when Lily had opened her bedroom door to see the boy she had thought she'd never speak to again, the resulting shouting match, along with the unintentional and unmistakable signs of uncontrolled magic, finally put Petunia over the edge.

Once Snape and the friends were gone, Petunia had explained to their parents in a cold and clear voice that as long as they continue to encourage such freakish behavior in their home, she would no longer be living under their roof. This had been the last straw, and the blonde and boney girl already had a typing course in London and a friend with a flat ready for her arrival the next day. They were free to visit if they pleased, but she was not going to be associated with Lily's nonsense anymore.

And so Lily and her parents had been living in relative peace for the past few weeks, and Rose and John Evans were anticipating the arrival of one of Lily's magical friends as much as she herself was. Feeling the guilt and anger that always accompanied thoughts of Petunia coming on, the witch went back to perusing the letter from Alice.

_Anyways, to make a long story short, my mother saw Marlene's mother last night in Diagon Alley, and because I'm sure Marly still hasn't contacted you about her arrival, I thought I'd pass on what I know. Turns out that tomorrow your fireplace will get put on the Floo network for a bit, and Marlene will get there with Floo powder for you and your things when it's hooked up. Then you'll just pop on over here, and the three of us will be ready for a few weeks of fun. _

_Mary and Emmeline wrote me that they won't be back from Italy until a week before term starts, so I guess we'll meet up with them in Diagon Alley some time during that week. Bring some Muggle money with you, though, because I really want you to show me around Muggle London before that! _

_Love,_

_Alice_

_P.S. Just bring Herman- that's my owl- along with you by Floo. He's rather small, as you can see, and I'm a bit worried about him being able to last through the entire round-trip._

Lily smiled at the bit about Muggle London, because Alice was absolutely obsessed with finally seeing all that she had learned about in Muggle Studies. The muggleborn Lily had always found it immensely amusing that a pureblood witch could be more fascinated by the inner workings of a toaster oven than she was by a ghost or a talking portrait, but was only too happy to satisfy her friend's enthusiasm. Confused by the post-script, she turned around to check on Herman. He appeared to be fine, but she rather suspected that he had taken a kip midway on his journey. Alice had doubtlessly sent this the morning previous to today, and the distance didn't take Lyra nearly as long… Shrugging, Lily absentmindedly folded up the letter and tossed Herman an owl treat from the bag on her desk.

The emerald eyes found the alarm clock once more. Letting out a pained groan, the redhead stumbled back to bed and fell underneath the sheets, hoping for at least a few more hours of rest before the busy day ahead.

**Before I get any outraged comments about how Petunia's gone, this is actually according to canon. In her writing on Pottermore, our favorite author said that Petunia left home to become a typist- that's how she met Vernon. Besides, I hate Petunia, so less is more, don't you think? Same with Alice's last name- I checked to make sure on the last name and was surprised to find she was _related_ to the Prewetts, not one of them. JK said in an interview that Alice's maiden name was Fortescue, so I ran with that. Okay, I've explained myself properly, so I'll tell you that the next chapter is Marlene's arrival and then Alice's house. Any suggestions? I'm just bumbling along until we get to sixth year right now, so I'd love to pick your brains on the subject of the summer's events. As usual, add to Story Alert and review. I'm going out on a limb here and saying I won't post until I get 10 reviews for this chapter, so help me out (once again- SUGGESTIONS PLEASE!)! **

**Lots of love,**

**OfPheonixandHolly**


	9. The Convenience of Floo

**Thanks to** **Magic Within Us, Love-Pink26, RidingonRumbleroar'sback, Katie, Bart, Nitwit and Tweak, 08, writingblondie, and Tiny 1.0. Technically nine reviewers, but because I love them so much, here's the next chapter. I should have another one up later tonight (I'm EST), and that will be Alice's house.**

"Mum, Dad, a little help, please?" pleaded Lily as she attempted to drag her trunk down the stairs.

John Evans muttered distractedly from his perch on the edge of the living room couch. "Be there in a second, Lily… we're a little busy right now."

His wife paid her younger daughter only slightly more attention, turning in time to assess the situation and then whipping back to stare at what she believed to be the more pressing matter in the household. "Dear, try not to bang the wall on the way down, you know how the scuff marks ruin the paint."

The witch of the household glowered at her parents' backs. Their obsession with all things magical typically served to get Lily _more _attention, but in this case was causing her to get hardly any. _Guess I know how Petunia feels._ Marlene was most likely going to arrive in the next half-hour or so—she tended to be late, of course—but Lily's parents had been staring at the unlit fireplace for the last hour as if it were a delightfully fascinating show on television.

John Evans had barely changed from the day Lily had been born, other than a few signs of graceful aging. The fiery hair that had once matched his daughter's was now peppered with white, and the joys of raising two children had been etched on his face in a series of light creases. His wife was much the same. Her blonde hair by now was by no means natural, and perhaps her figure was not what it had once been, but Rose Evans was still clearly the reason for Lily's beauty. At the moment, however, both looked many years younger as they gazed intently at the fireplace, faces as eagerly hopeful as children on Christmas.

After several more trips up and down the stairs, including a rather lengthy and annoying one that involving corralling Herman into the cage from which he had fled, Lily had single-handedly transported all her belongings to the living room to bring to Alice's. Rose and John still had not changed their focus, and Lily was about to tell them that waiting so long wouldn't help Marlene get there any more quickly when the fireplace sprang to life.

The way in which her parents reacted to the appearance of the flames, which at this point were still no different than in any other Muggle fireplace, Lily would always compare to cavemen first discovering fire. Their mouths dropped in astonishment and their eyes widened comically, as if they had never before encountered a lit hearth. She could only imagine what they would do when the flames—

"Great Scott! It's turned green!"

Sure enough, John Evans had been correct. The green tongues of fire that indicated the activation of the Floo network in the Evans' home were not to be the most startling revelation to the Muggle inhabitants of the room that day. In mere seconds, the wildly spinning form of a teenage girl had appeared in the fire. Despite the inevitable coughing that followed the inhalation of ash from the fire, Marlene McKinnon stepped out into the Muggle living room looking as though she had just stepped through the front door. She smiled widely at Lily's parents and said her hellos.

Marlene had met Rose and John Evans several times before on the King's Cross platform and in Diagon Alley, and thought they were absolutely hysterical. Unlike their eldest daughter, the couple adored any signs of magic and lived for the moments when they were exposed to the magical world. Last year, Marlene had spent two hours with Mr. Evans in Quality Quidditch Supplies while he frantically purchased every book he could find on the sport. On the platform after school had let out this past term, Mrs. Evans had nearly bowled Alice and Marlene over with her enthusiastic thanks for the book on magical history they had sent her for Christmas.

Likewise, Rose and John adored Marlene. Really, they were enthusiastic about any magical friend of Lily's other than that Snape boy, who had always seemed to cause turmoil in the household. They didn't miss his presence this summer, but they were quite desperate to talk to magical folk who were more amused by their onslaught of questions than Lily was. Therefore, with an enthusiasm born of deprivation, they began bombarding the newcomer with inquiries about her method of travel.

"How the devil did you fit through the chimney?"

"Are you sure you aren't burnt, dear?"

"What do you mean when you say, 'The flames don't hurt?'"

"Why do you bother with brooms and such when you can use _this?_"

"Mum, Dad, let her breath, please."

The excited adults looked momentarily put out, but stepped aside while Marlene rushed over to hug Lily. "Sorry, Lyra's already at Alice's. You know how I forget to return things, and I suppose that includes birds, too."

The redhead just laughed at her friend and looked towards her parents. "I know you're having fun with Marlene, but we really should make sure all my stuff gets over before the Floo connection is severed."

Lily and Marlene allowed the adults to throw the pinch of Floo powder over the flames, place the items in the hearth, and call out, "The Dell, Mould-on-the-Wold!" They seemed to be having more fun than the girls would have had with the task, anyway.

Finally, the pile of belongings being exhausted and Lily's parents appearing quite disappointed that their fun was over, Lily said a quick goodbye. "I'll send you a letter when we intend to go to Diagon Alley—you recall where the Leaky Cauldron is, of course, but just remember the exact appearance. When you're standing there on the street, try and _remember _it, and you should be able to get in. We'll be waiting there to let you into Diagon Alley, and afterwards perhaps we'll try and get you a ride home on the Knight Bus. You know, the magical bus? Oh, yes, of course you do."

Their excitement again bolstered, Lily's parents gave their younger daughter a hug and kiss before stepping back to view the fascinating process. Marlene went first, laughing and waving merrily at the couple as she spun away. Lily, less fond of the method of transportation because of the dizziness it entailed, blew one last kiss to her parents before spinning away to the Fortescue home, the Dell. As their daughter was whisked away, the flames flickered and died. Rose and John sighed. It would be a boring few weeks before the annual thrill of a shopping trip in the Wizarding world.

**Okay, I'm clearly American, so forgive me if you're from the UK and I screw up your phrasing or later on, geography. Mould-on-the-Wold is an all-wizarding village in a hilly area near Bath, from what I could find on the HP wikia. Sorry about the wait, but I'm just a broke high-schooler that has to babysit rather annoying children for 7 hours a day in order to have the luxury of spending money, and in between cross country practice and my job, things are a little hectic. Plus, I got my wisdom teeth taken out earlier this week. It's been a fun couple of days. Okay, ideas on Alice's family? I feel like Marlene has both parents and a younger brother or twin brothers who will start at Hogwarts this fall, because the whole McKinnon family was murdered in the first War, but as for Alice… I don't get the feeling she has siblings, I guess. Besides, I think she and Frank might have both been only children, and that's why they started a family so early- because they want more children. Recommendations on her family, names, jobs, home, etc. that are plausible with canon would be great :) Thanks for reading, and as for you reviewers, YOU'RE AMAZING. As for you who are about to put this on Story Alert or Favorites, hold up. Press that little review button first and leave a couple words for me please. I've had well over 1000 hits and 300 visitors since I started this fic, and yet there are 33 reviews. Help bridge that gap, please. No sign-in necessary. **

**Lots of love,**

**OfPheonixandHolly**


	10. I Dreamed a Dream

**Um, hello. Remember me? So after a veryyyyy long unplanned (and unannounced) hiatus, this story is back. Senior year sucks- the constant struggle between panic attacks about the future, homework, and the lack of motivation to do the aforementioned homework. Sucks to ****suck. Anyway, I was in the writing mood and decided that I could give this story another go. Are updates once a week better than none at all? So let me know what you think because I'm tired and I'm not sure if this chapter fits and I have a very vague plan in my head in which this chapter sort of functions as a filler. I have the next chapter ready to go, and if I get ten reviews for this chapter, it goes up tomorrow! SHOUTOUTS TO REVIEWERS.**

_Adrenaline. Pure adrenaline was all she felt pumping through her veins as she ran through the dark woods. She wasn't sure why she was running, or where she was, but her senses were clouded by fear. Something was chasing after her, snapping twigs and emitting snarls that raised her every hair. She kept on running, feeling panic overtake her as the pursuer began to close the gap between them. Ever terrified of heights, climbing the nearby trees was out of the question, and her endurance had never been particularly tested by long nights studying in the library. Escape seemed futile when suddenly the thick tangle of trees stopped. Finally able to see by the light of the full moon, she could make out the castle of Hogwarts towering far in the distance. Realizing that she stood no chance in the open against the creature behind her, she turned, hoping that it had disappeared back into the Forbidden Forest. The growls that assaulted her acute hearing were the first evidence that her prayers had not been answered. Barely five meters away stood a werewolf, yellow eyes trained on her every move and tense muscles ready to pounce. Trembling with fear and bracing herself for the inevitable, she dropped to the ground._

_The werewolf advanced, hackles raised and teeth glistening. She sensed rather than saw the gigantic paws leave the ground as the creature leapt towards her, and her eyes screwed shut against the sight._

_A thump, a whimper. Sounds of struggle. Realizing that a moment too long had passed, she looked up. Back near the edge of the Forest, a furry black dog was wrestling the werewolf, trying to pin it down. Unable to move from shock and relief, she finally processed what new creature was standing in front of her._

_A tawny stag stood guard between her and the werewolf, its back to her. As if sensing her attention, its head swiveled in her direction. Her eyes widened as she recognized the eyes._

"James!"

"Lily!"

Lily's eyes snapped open at the noise that didn't fit in her dream. Slowly, the concerned faces of Alice and Marlene came into focus. Alice's mousy hair was still tousled from sleep, and Marlene had an indent on her cheek, as if she had fallen asleep on the summer homework she had started only the night before.

"Lily, are you alright?" Alice urged.

Shaking her head from the strangely vivid dream, the red-haired girl furrowed her brow. "Yes, I'm fine. Is something wrong? Why are you guys up?"

Marlene frowned. "If I had any say in the matter, I'd still be sleeping. The Transfiguration lesson kept me up later than I expected. You've been tossing around and shouting in your sleep for the past few minutes—want to explain why we were so rudely awakened?"

Lily blushed. The nightmare had felt so real that she had no trouble recollecting the images that had been running through her mind only a few moments previous. The only problem was recalling what had dawned on her just before she was jolted awake. She was a little surprised that her panic had been enough to wake up her friends, but the real concern was the dream had been about.

Alice prodded gently, "Anything you'd like to talk about?"

The dream wasn't embarrassing or too private to relate to Marlene and Alice, but for some reason Lily found herself hesitating. It had been too real. Something about the dream had her confused and curious, wanting to decipher what had just occurred. In any case, she shook her head in dismissal and muttered, "Not a big deal. Just a nightmare about those nasty boys in Slytherin."

There was no reason to lie, and yet Lily wanted to keep the dream to herself. It was hers to examine for now because she had no idea what the implications were. Perhaps later she could tell the girls what had caused such a stir; she knew that they deserved to know, but until she herself understood the nightmare, Marlene and Alice didn't need to fret.

Marlene shrugged, turning to climb back into her bed. Alice hovered a second longer, clearly sensing something was off. Apparently deciding that a deeper conversation could wait a few hours longer until the sun made an appearance, she too slipped underneath the covers.

Marlene was the first to break the silence. "Goodnight. And Lily? We're always ready to talk."

Alice jumped in, "No matter what. Whenever you think you're able to."

Lily smiled slowly. "I know. But for now, I think it's best we forget about it and go to bed. We're going to Muggle London tomorrow, remember? Shopping is much more exhausting without magic. "

Murmuring in agreement, the other two girls nestled into their pillows and the room fell into silence. Lily lay awake, her mind racing. After years in the magical world, she couldn't shake the feeling that perhaps Divination would come in handy just about now. Too bad she had neglected to pay any real attention during the past three years. What if it was some sort of omen?

She scoffed at herself silently. More likely than not, she was overanalyzing. After all, she only knew of one werewolf that would be anywhere near Hogwarts, and surely Dumbledore wasn't about to let such a situation occur any time soon. Furthermore, although she was no Marauder, she was fairly certain that stags and shaggy dogs did not roam the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest working to protect unsuspecting girls from the clutches of dangerous creature.

What Lily simply couldn't shake was the last thing she remembered from the dream. It was the color of the stag's eyes, a warm hazel so unlike any deer could ever have. She couldn't place it, but it felt somehow both significant and familiar.

Having convinced herself that the dream meant next to nothing and that the color of a creature's eyes was no reason to stay up half the night thinking, Lily shifted onto her side and within moments fell into a peaceful slumber, unaware that her roommates were silently communicating above her sleeping bag.

Marlene's eyes glinted with merriment. _"James?" _she mouthed to her companion.

Alice shook her head quickly. Hearing gentle breathing and realizing that the room's third occupant had finally fallen asleep, she risked a whisper. "Marly, hush. Lily would've screamed if anyone was being attacked by those Slytherins."

Her friend shook her head in mock disdain. "Oh please. She was not telling us the real story, and she won't because she'll never admit to herself that she's scared of the war and danger and even any sort of empathy for James Potter."

Alice glared at Marlene. "We're all terrified, Marly. You know Lily—she's scared for everyone. Not just James. We have no idea if she even knows what she shouted. Go to sleep—we'll find out as soon as she does."

Marlene watched as Alice rolled over to fall asleep, but did not move to do the same. She knew Alice was right, of course, but she couldn't help wondering if perhaps Lily would someday realize that she had shouted James Potter's name with both shock and relief in her tone as a sort of foreshadowing. Marlene wasn't one to put stock in all that subconscious message-hooey, but she found herself hoping that her Muggleborn friend could find a way to feel secure. Even if it meant overcoming her hatred to understand that James Potter had the potential to be so much more than the bane of her existence.

**Love it? Hate it? Bitter about the lack of updates? Hit me up with a review because I'm a review whore and those will indicate if this story is still worth my time. Thanks for reading, and TELL ME WHAT YOU WANT TO SEE HAPPEN NEXT. Keep suggestions in line with canon and preferably not events that would happen two years down the road in this story's timeline.**

**Lots of love,**

**OfPheonixandHolly**


	11. Potter Manor

**This chapter is thanks to: Lo, Potterhead in the Arena, Anastasia, Fenixfether, Nitwit and Tweak, and AllAboutObsessions. You guys are amazing!**

The sun was just beginning to streak the grey sky with brilliant pink and orange as James jogged onto the steps from the grounds of Potter Manor. Contrary to the common belief of his fan club, James' body had not developed from pallid and scrawny to hardened muscle thanks to the few hours he spent on a broom every day. Every morning without fail, James could be found pounding out a few miles before returning to join Moony in forcing Sirius out of bed.

The summer weeks had flown by, with Sirius spending his first summer as a permanent member of the household and Remus sleeping at the Manor more often than at his own home. Peter was the only Marauder not present, as he chose to spend the summer being doted on by his overbearing mother. Still, James, Sirius, and Remus managed to cause enough ruckus without their friend tagging along behind.

Hands on his knees as he fought to catch his breath, James could only think of how much his training would improve his play in the upcoming Quidditch season. He was sure that if he managed to play consistently this year, he would receive the captainship in his last year at Hogwarts. The general consensus on the team was that Benjy Fenwick or Abigail Bennett would be chosen to fill the position in their final season on the team, and James wanted to prove that he was prepared to take on the responsibility in the future.

Snatching his glasses off his nose, James quickly wiped the sweat off his face and strolled inside the still-dim Manor. Although the ancient family home was hulking and rather intimidating on the outside, Emily Potter had made the décor decidedly homey. Walking through the foyer, James chuckled as he caught sight of a floating laundry basket making its way down the stairs. He grabbed Sirius's leather jacket off the pile, saving his best friend's precious possession from the clutches of the house elves, who were under Mrs. Potter's instructions to destroy the offending article of clothing as soon as possible.

"Muffy, why do I feel that we've had this same encounter before?"

The laundry shifted so that James could see the large brown eyes of his mother's favorite house elf. The wrinkled old face sank in disappointment as she saw her plans had been thwarted. "But Master Potter, the Missus says it gives people a poor impression of Master Black! Missus says to Muffy, 'No jacket,' and every time Muffy finds it lying around—"

Her squeaky, wobbly tirade was drowned out by James' laughter. "Muffy, don't you worry about my mother. I'll make sure she doesn't know it's still around and that way everyone's happy."

The tiny creature still looked concerned, and called after James as he continued upstairs, "If Missus finds the jacket, Muffy won't be taking the blame, sir!"

Waving in acknowledgement and still laughing at how seriously the house elves took his mother's directions, James made his way to his bedroom. Flinging open the wardrobe and shrugging on comfortable sweatpants and his father's old Quidditch jumper, James heard noises coming from further down the hallway. He trotted over to Sirius' door, expecting to find Moony using various spells to wake their friend.

Instead, he found Sirius wide-awake, roaring with raucous laughter as Remus stood at the window, evidently not amused by his friend's antics. Sirius glanced over at the newcomer and fought to control himself, ready to relay the humor of the situation. But another look at Remus' exasperated face set him off once again, and James turned to the sane being in the room for explanation.

The pale boy could only proffer the heavy parchment in his grasp to James, clearly affronted by Sirius' idea of a joke. Looking at the letter in his hands, James finally understood what had occurred.

Sirius wheezed, "He thought…he got…all…. Trolls!" He promptly collapsed again in laughter.

James only shook his head in disappointment, remarking, "Losing your touch, Padfoot. C'mon, you pulled this same stunt on me years ago. Mum almost killed me when she saw my grades—said I'd become a delinquent."

Remus chimed in, "I for one hope you actually receive a Troll, Pads."

"It's impossible to get that score unless you actually have the brains of a troll, Moony—"

The playful argument continued on for a time until Emily Potter's voice echoed upstairs. "Boys! Come and eat! We need to get to Diagon Alley!"

Groaning in unison at the thought of shopping for school supplies, just another reminder that summer was very nearly over, the boys trudged down to the dining room. James' mother was contently nursing a mug of coffee over _The Daily Prophet_, and Daniel Potter was conversing with a head in the fireplace.

Walter McQuillan, one of Daniel's fellow Aurors, took notice of the three new faces that had entered the room and shouted a jovial, "Morning, boys!"

Alerted to the presence of James and his friends, Daniel distractedly waved a hello and went back to the conversation with his colleague. "Walter, tell Anderson to send out extra patrols from Law Enforcement."

"Potter, you can't be serious. It's all bluster—these creeps aren't about to attack one of the busiest Wizarding populations in Britain—"

"I didn't tell you to send out the entire Auror Department, did I? Voldemort and his followers have had no qualms about the attacks they've executed in the past few months, so I see it as a necessary precaution—"

Emily, noticing that the boys were all attentively eavesdropping on her husband's conversation, decided to distract them from hearing any classified information. Setting down her coffee and gesturing towards the table, she spoke. "Exam results arrived! Don't you fret, Remus, Dumbledore seems to know you're here. James, don't you dare start eating before I see your marks."

Hastily swallowing the bacon he had snagged from the table, James announced, "Outstanding in D.A.D.A., Transfiguration, Astronomy, Muggle Studies, Care of Magical Creatures, and Herbology. And Exceeds Expectations in Potions, Charms, and Runes—"

"Awh mahn," Sirius whined through a mouthful of eggs, "Oo beaf me!"

Remus wrinkled his nose in disgust. "Nice work, mate. I got an A in Arithmancy—not surprising, I knew I messed up those calculations. Five O's and eight O.W.L.'s in all. Not too bad, I suppose, other than History of Magic… always knew that essay on the giant wars would kill me."

Emily rose to give Remus a hug. "James, how many did you end up getting? Nine?"

James didn't respond, having noticed the other contents of the envelope. In his hand he held a golden badge, emblazoned with a roaring lion and the word "Captain" in flowing script.

Sirius emitted a very feminine squeal and seized the badge from his friend's hand. "Captain! James Potter, Quidditch Captain!"

Emily and Remus both smiled, and Daniel broke off the discussion with McQuillan to congratulate his son. Stunned by the news, James could only smile as Emily made plans to buy him a new set of practice robes. The captainship was what he had always dreamed of, ever since his father had told him he had been captain in his days at Hogwarts.

The room finally settled down and the three boys sat down for a quick breakfast before the annual trip to Diagon Alley. Amidst the quiet chatter, Sirius quipped, "So James, Lily might not be impressed by the captaincy, but that Outstanding in Muggle Studies will have her begging for you in no time!"

Remus sniggered. "Not after she hears about his score in History of Magic."

Sirius barked out a laugh. "Seeing as Peter wasn't gazing at the back of her head for the entirety of the exam, I reckon even he managed better than a _Troll_—"

Emily's smile changed abruptly into a menacing glare. "James Potter! _You got a Troll in History of Magic?"_

**As you may be able to tell, I am leading up to a day in Diagon Alley. One of you lovely reviewers suggested that I add in more evidence of the war, and so I am trying to subtly do so. In my head, next chapter will be long and full of a lot of stuff. Here's the deal: if you want that next chapter, drop me a review. It will be published if I see enough interest. I want this story to be the LJ story I always wanted, but I can't do it without feedback and advice. Even motivation is helpful. **

**Look at how easy they made this for you! There is a box below, and you don't even have to sign in. Drop me a line, and you get a shoutout. **


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